Nub Taylor resigns as Avery County clerk of  superior court

From Staff Reports

Avery Journal-Times

Robert “Nub” Taylor, the subject of a state investigation into alleged illegal bond changes, resigned as Avery County’s clerk of superior court effective last Wednesday. 

Taylor submitted a resignation letter dated March 1 to superior court Judge James L. Baker, Jr., who suspended Taylor from office two weeks ago.

Lisa A. Vance was appointed to serve as court clerk for the remainder of the current term until a replacement is elected.  Vance had earlier been named temporarily to the post, pending a formal hearing to determine if Taylor should be permanently removed from the office he had held since 1984.

 State Bureau of Investigation agents arrested Taylor on Feb. 22  and charged him with violations involving defendant bonds allegedly changed at the Avery County jail. 

One of those bonds was apparently changed several months after a memorandum issued by Baker which said superior court bonds were not to be changed, citing state law.

Taylor’s resignation eliminated the need for a formal hearing. Baker’s March 2 order terminated the now-unnecessary suspension hearing, but Taylor, who is a candidate for Avery County sheriff in the May 2 Republican primary, still faces  felony charges.  If convicted, he couldn’t serve as sheriff.

Meanwhile, the SBI continues to look into how some Avery County estates were handled.

A statement from Taylor’s attorney, James (Tom) Rusher of Boone, said, in part:

“While Mr. Taylor had in mind leaving the clerk’s office, the timing of his resignation will be costly to his lifetime state retirement.  Even so, Mr. Taylor looks forward to new adventures in his life.  Mr. Taylor is grateful to the voters of Avery County who have elected him over and over to the office of Clerk of Superior Court.

“Mr. Taylor is at peace with himself,” Rusher said, adding: Mr. Taylor is not guilty of the criminal charges brought against him.  He looks forward to his trial when, he is confident, he will be found not guilty.”

Rusher served for 20 years as district attorney in the 24th District of North Carolina, which includes Avery County, retiring from that position in 2002.    

In related matters:

n A Jan. 3, 2001 letter approving an appointment of Taylor’s brother, Gregory “Peck” Taylor, as “public administrator” contains the signature of Judge Baker.  An affidavit filed by Newland Police Chief Mike Estep, however, said Judge Baker had “no recollection of ever giving written approval” authorizing the appointment of Taylor’s brother.  The Avery Journal-Times has requested clarification from Baker.

n Avery County Deputy Sheriff Eddie R. Hughes, in a signed statement given to The Avery Journal-Times, said, in part:  “The release of inmates by Clerk Taylor has been a common practice in the Avery County Jail since I started working in 1999. 

I have personally requested Clerk Taylor to release certain inmates due to medical reasons in the past as housing inmates needing medical attention carries such a high liability for the jail staff and our budget, which comes from our tax dollars.  I did not know this practice was illegal and, as far as I know, I have never seen the order issued by our district addressing the release of inmates by custodial officers that was published in The Avery Journal last week.” 

The Avery Journal-Times last week quoted from an Aug. 12, 2005 “memorandum” from Judge Baker to superior and district court judges, the district attorney, clerks of court, magistrates and sheriffs’ departments in the 24th District, which includes Avery, Watauga, Mitchell, Yancey and Madison counties. 

That memorandum said, in part, “Under North Carolina law, release conditions set by superior court judges may not be modified by magistrates, or by clerks, or even by district court judges.”  However, on Jan. 30 of this year, more than five months after Baker’s memorandum, Taylor allegedly changed a $5,000 secured bond to an unsecured bond. 

Changing a secured bond to an unsecured bond allows a defendant to go free without monetary payment for the bond.  No trial date has been set for Taylor, who is expected to be tried in Avery County, according to a spokesperson for the North Carolina Department of Justice.